The chapter starts with a discussion of research in mathematics education, and discusses the difference between quantitative and qualitative research, as well as experimental and descriptive research.
The book then goes into learning theories in mathematics, including:
The next topic is constructivism, which emphasizes hands on experiential learning. This leads to a discussion of inductive teaching (going from example to a general conclusion) versus deductive teaching (starting with a general rule and then applying it to specific cases).
Finally the chapter concludes with a discussion of motivation. In this chapter they talk about ego goal motivation (learning to compete or get a good grade) versus mastery goal motivation (based on curiosity and learning for its own sake). Other aspects of motivation are emotion and self-confidence. All of these "feeling" sides of motivation for learning are summarized as mathematical "disposition."
The textbook I will use as an example is "Prentice Hall Algebra I", focusing on chapter 11 "Radical Expressions and Equations". It is not really a topic that lends itself well to enactive or iconic representation - nor does this textbook make much of a try at it. Nor is there any kind of an effort to use inductive learning or to go from whole to part in the introduction of concepts.
On the other hand, some of the "exercises" sections have a set of challenge problems which could make for interesting challenges for a teacher who wants to introduce some "problem" based learning. Also, there is at least one chapter devoted to word problems that could relate some of the concepts learned to "real life" applications. Perhaps if a teacher did some reordering of the material the teacher could use the textbook to support current learning theory, but the textbook itself does little to try to push learning in that direction.
In all honesty, I think I originally arrived at my positive attitude towards math because of "ego goal" motivation. I figured out in grade school that I was a lot better at math than most of my fellow students, and the fact that I could "beat" the other students was a source of motivation to do more of it - especially since I wasn't exactly excelling at sports. However, I was also motivated in part by my love of science fiction and the space program. I figured being good at math might help give me a shot at being an astronaut - or at least at being one of the guys building the spaceship (not that either dream really worked out).
I think I also became positively disposed to math just because I could predict how well I would do at any given test, whereas other classes always seemed like a crapshoot.
From my own experience, I do think that math is more fun to do if it is challenging without being too tough. There is a lot of joy in figuring things out in math if it isn't simply too far above your head for success to be likely. Also, although the textbook somewhat discourages this approach, I do think that "ego goal" motivation in the short run can lead to more "mastery goal" oriented motivation in the long run. So, I think that rewards and praise are helpful - especially for younger students.